Our Lady of Lourdes Parish
Kanlaon Street, Sta. Mesa Heights, Quezon City
Our Lady of Lourdes Parish
A church risen from the ashes of World War II, where two generations of the Morales family celebrated life's most sacred moments—a Christmas baptism in 1959 and a wedding covered by Manila's newspapers in 1968.
Our Lady of Lourdes Parish as it appeared in the early 1960s—the church where Romulo Himler Morales was baptized and confirmed on Christmas Day 1959, and where his uncle Mamerto Miguel Morales married Eva Diosela Gonzales in 1968. The neo-Romanesque structure, modeled after the Convent of San Antonio in Zaragoza, Spain, had stood for less than a decade when the Morales family first walked through its doors.
On Christmas morning 1959, a young couple from Aklan brought their seven-week-old son to Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Quezon City. The infant—their first child to survive past birth—received both baptism and confirmation that day, an extraordinary occurrence made possible by the presence of a Spanish bishop who had survived World War II. Nine years later, the child's uncle would stand at the same altar for his wedding, an event covered by three Manila newspapers.
These two sacraments at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish mark pivotal moments in the Morales family story—a story that began in the coastal town of Numancia, Aklan and would eventually cross the Pacific to America. But the church itself carries its own story of destruction, survival, and resurrection.
Morales Family at Our Lady of Lourdes
Parents: Dr. Romulo G. Morales & Hally R. Tamayo
Baptized by Fr. Sebastian de Sangüesa, OFMCap
Confirmed by Bishop Miguel Olano, OFMCap
& Eva Diosela G. Gonzales
Featured in The Saturday Mirror, The Manila Times, The Philippine Herald
Reception: Aristocrat Mural Room, Cubao
Origins in Intramuros (1886–1945)
The devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes in the Philippines began with the arrival of the Capuchin friars on the shores of Manila on May 13, 1886. They came as missionaries bound for the Caroline and Palau Islands, intending only to make the Philippines a supply base. But circumstances—and the needs of a church threatened by the turmoil of revolution—kept them in Manila.
In 1892, Father Berardo de Cieza commissioned Filipino sculptor Manuel Flores to carve an image of Our Lady of Lourdes for the convent grotto. A second, larger image—the one now crowned and venerated at the altar—was completed by the same artist in 1894. The devotion grew rapidly, and by 1910, a magnificent church stood on General Luna Street within the Walled City of Intramuros.
The liberation of Manila from Japanese occupation became one of the most devastating urban battles of World War II. From February 3 to March 3, 1945, American forces fought house-to-house through the city. Intramuros—the ancient Walled City—was reduced to rubble. Over 100,000 Filipino civilians died, and nearly every historic structure within the walls was destroyed. The Capuchin church was among the casualties.
When the bombs began falling in February 1945, the Capuchin friars acted quickly. They hid both images of Our Lady of Lourdes in the sacristy of San Agustin Church—one of only two structures in Intramuros to survive the bombing. The images were later moved to the chapel of the University of Santo Tomas, then to the Santa Teresita Chapel on Mayon Street in Quezon City, where they remained for six years.
Resurrection in Quezon City (1946–1951)
On February 9, 1946, the Capuchins received official authorization to restore their church. But rather than rebuild in the ruins of Intramuros, they chose to build anew on a larger property in the emerging suburb of Quezon City. The 10,500-square-meter lot on Retiro Street (now N.S. Amoranto Avenue) was donated by Don Salvador Araneta and Doña Natividad Zaragoza Tuazon.
"On February 10, 1951, the image of Our Lady of Lourdes was transferred to the new church in a huge and solemn procession from the Sta. Teresita Chapel, presided by Archbishop Olano and was attended by thousands of devotees."
Construction began on January 30, 1950. The cornerstone laying was attended by Quezon City Mayor Ignacio Santos Diaz, Don Salvador Araneta, and Doña Natividad Zaragoza Tuazon. The new church was inaugurated on August 15, 1951—the Feast of the Assumption—by Archbishop of Manila Gabriel Reyes, with Senate President Mariano Jesús Cuenco among the dignitaries present.
Church History Timeline
Christmas Day, 1959
By Christmas 1959, the church at Kanlaon Street corner Retiro Street was just eight years old—a modern, neo-Romanesque structure that testified to the resilience of faith. Dr. Romulo G. Morales and his wife Hally R. Tamayo, both from Numancia, Aklan, brought their seven-week-old son for baptism on Christmas morning.
The baptism and confirmation of Jose Romulo Himler Morales at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, December 25, 1959. Bishop Miguel Olano (left, in full episcopal vestments with mitre and crozier) administers the sacrament while the family gathers at the altar. The image of Our Lady of Lourdes is visible in the background grotto.
What happened that Christmas morning was extraordinary. The infant received not only Baptism but also Confirmation—on the same day, at the same church. In Catholic practice, this was highly unusual for an infant. Confirmation typically occurred years later, when a child reached the age of reason. But the Church permitted infant confirmation under special circumstances: the presence of a bishop.
Two Sacraments, One Morning
The parish priest, Fr. Sebastian de Sangüesa, OFMCap, performed the baptism. But the confirmation was administered by Most Rev. Miguel M. Olano, OFMCap—the former Bishop of Guam who had been living at the Capuchin friary since 1945. His presence on Christmas Day 1959 made infant confirmation possible. At baptism, the child received the additional name "Jose"—becoming Jose Romulo Himler Morales, as recorded in Baptismal Register No. 18, page 145.
Jose Romulo Himler Morales
Child of Romulo Morales and Hally Tamayo. Born November 5, 1959 in Manila. Baptized according to the Rites of the Roman Catholic Church by Rev. Fr. Sebastian de Sangüesa, OFMCap.
Jose Romulo Himler Morales
Received the Holy Sacrament of Confirmation at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Kaniaon St., Q. City, by the Most Rev. Miguel M. Olano, OFMCap.
The Priests at the 1959 Baptism
Born September 29, 1891, in Alzo, Guipuzcoa, Spain. Entered the Capuchin Order in 1903. Appointed Bishop of Guam on July 9, 1934. Survived World War II and the Japanese occupation of Guam. Resigned as bishop in 1945 at the request of the Vatican and retired to the Capuchin Friary of Lourdes in Quezon City, where he spent fifteen years assisting with confirmations throughout the Manila area. He presided over the transfer of the Lourdes images in 1951. Returned to Spain in 1960. Died May 21, 1970, in Guam during a final visit.
Parish Priest of Our Lady of Lourdes from 1954 to 1961. A Spanish Capuchin who served the growing parish community in Quezon City during its formative years. He shepherded the parish through a period of rapid growth in the 1950s as Quezon City expanded. Fr. Sebastian later served again as parish priest from 1967 to 1976.
A Society Wedding, 1968
Nine years after the Christmas baptism, another Morales stood at the altar of Our Lady of Lourdes. On May 2, 1968, at 6:30 PM, Mamerto Miguel Gonzales Morales—the younger brother of Dr. Romulo G. Morales—married Eva Diosela Gonzales in a ceremony that made the society pages of three Manila newspapers.
Wedding announcements from The Saturday Mirror (April 27, 1968), The Manila Times (May 2, 1968), and The Philippine Herald. "Diosela G. Gonzales will be married to Mike Q. Morales at the Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Quezon City tomorrow May 2 at 6:30 p.m."
"The bride-elect is the only daughter of Mrs. Patrocinio Garcia vda. de Gonzales of Ibajay, Aklan, and she is a dietician at the Aklan Provincial Hospital. The future bridegroom is the son of Mrs. Patrocinio Quimpo-Morales of Numancia, Aklan and is connected with the Office of the Aklan Provincial Fiscal."
Wedding memento from the Morales-Gonzales wedding. "Our Wedding: Mamerto Miguel G. Morales & Eva Diosela G. Gonzales. Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Kanlaon, Quezon City. May 2, 1968 - 6:30 p.m. Reception: Mural Room, Aristocrat, Cubao, Quezon City." The memento bears the mark of Trajano Studio, 923 Arigui Qpo.
Mamerto Miguel—known as "Mike"—was a lawyer connected with the Office of the Aklan Provincial Fiscal. His bride Eva Diosela was a dietician at Aklan Provincial Hospital and a Centro Escolar University graduate. The wedding was a major social event: Aklan Governor Jose Legaspi and Fiscal Leon Gajo served as principal sponsors. Dr. Romulo Morales was bestman, and Virgilio Morales was veil sponsor.
The reception at the Aristocrat's Mural Room in Cubao brought together two families from Aklan who had built successful professional lives in Manila. But within four years, Mamerto Miguel would make a life-changing decision—to immigrate to the United States, abandoning his law degree and political aspirations to start over in California.
The Shrine Today
The interior of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes today. The soaring nave, dramatic apse mural of the Coronation of Mary, and the grotto shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes continue to draw thousands of devotees. The church remains under the care of the Capuchin friars.
On January 24, 1997, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines declared the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes a National Shrine—recognition of its significance as a pilgrimage site and center of Marian devotion. On August 22, 2020, following a decree from Pope Francis, the venerated image of Nuestra Señora de Lourdes de Manila received a Canonical Coronation—the highest honor a religious image can receive.
The church at Kanlaon Street corner N.S. Amoranto Avenue continues to serve as a spiritual hub for Quezon City and beyond. The Capuchins operate the Lourdes School of Quezon City (founded 1954) nearby. The shrine is famous for its healing Masses, and devotees continue to flock to the miraculous image that survived the destruction of Intramuros.
For the Morales family, Our Lady of Lourdes represents a thread connecting generations—from the Christmas baptism of 1959 to the society wedding of 1968, from the provincial towns of Aklan to the growing metropolis of Manila, and eventually across the Pacific to America. The church's own story of destruction and resurrection mirrors the journey of so many Filipino families: loss, survival, faith, and renewal.
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